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Organising events - attending a Safety Advisory Group meeting

Following the acceptance of an event application form, it is the responsibility of the event organiser to arrange a number of planning meetings with the relevant agencies and the council. After the initial planning meetings have taken place and a draft event plan is available, the event organiser must submit it to the Land Manager and Event Advisor for consideration.

Should the views of the Safety Advisory Group (SAG) be required, the event organiser will be asked to circulate the event plan to the members of the SAG. Should further discussion be required, the event organiser will be asked to attend a meeting of the SAG, organised by the Events officer from Newcastle City Council.

The purpose of this group is to fully discuss the public safety issues relating to the event. The group has no legal powers, it is an advisory group and therefore cannot give consent for the event to take place. It is set up to advise the event organiser on any public safety issues which may need to be addressed.

The SAG is there:

To ensure that each member of the group is aware of their individual role within the group and at the event and are suitably qualified and authorised to represent their organisation.

To ensure, as far as possible that the risk to public safety is minimised for all those working at or attending the event.

To support the event organiser in the production of a written event plan setting out all the public safety plans relating to the event. A draft event plan must be made available prior to the initial SAG meeting.

To support the event organiser in keeping a written record of all SAG meetings. To clearly note recommendations agreed by the advisory group and note actions arising from those meetings. The Chair of the SAG is responsible for distributing the written record of the meetings to all of the members of the SAG.

To ensure that there are in existence agreed contingency plans for dealing with emergency situations at events.

To ensure that the event organiser appoints an Event Safety Officer who can demonstrate competency throughout the planning of the event and who will be responsible for all safety aspects of the event.

To ensure there is a thorough debrief and make recommendations as necessary.

If the group agree that all the safety and management issues have been addressed by the event organiser and a written event plan has been circulated to the group, then the event plan can be signed off by the group as meeting all the necessary public safety requirements. Unless unforeseen circumstances arise, no further meetings need to take place.

If the SAG does not think that all the public safety issues have been fully addressed, the event plan will not be signed off by the group and the event organiser will be required to attend additional SAG meetings in order to resolve the outstanding issues.

The membership of the SAG should be made up of representatives of the following:

Please note: This information has no legal force and is not an authoritative interpretation of the law, which is a matter for the Courts. It is intended to help businesses to understand in general terms, the main features of the legislation. The information is not a substitute for the legislation and you should refer to the text of the legislation for a full statement of legal requirements and obligations. Where appropriate, you should seek your own independent legal advice.

You may also need a specific licence for your event. For more information on the licences that may be applicable, visit licences and permits